Senate Democrats Criticize Obama Tax Plan

Members Of President-Elect's Party Say Proposed Tax Cuts Wouldn't Stimulate Economy In Significant Way

(AP)  President-elect Barack Obama's proposed tax cuts ran into opposition Thursday from senators in his own party who said they wouldn't do much to stimulate the economy or create jobs.

Senators from both parties agreed that Congress should do something to stimulate the economy. But Democratic senators emerging from a private meeting of the Senate Finance Committee criticized business and individual tax cuts in Obama's stimulus plan.

They were especially critical of a proposed $3,000 tax credit for companies that hire or retrain workers.

"If I'm a business person, it's unlikely if you give me a several-thousand-dollar credit that I'm going to hire people if I can't sell the products they're producing," said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., a member of the committee.

"That to me is just misdirected," Conrad said.

Sen John Kerry, D-Mass., said, "I'd rather spend the money on the infrastructure, on direct investment, on energy conversion, on other kinds of things that much more directly, much more rapidly and much more certainly create a real job."

The cost of the economic rescue package Obama wants is expected to swell to $800 billion or more. About $300 billion of Obama's package would be for tax cuts or refunds for individuals and businesses.

One tax provision would provide a $500 tax cut for most workers and $1,000 for couples, at a cost of about $140 billion to $150 billion over two years. The individual tax cuts may be awarded through withholding less from worker paychecks, effectively making them about $10 to $20 larger each week.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said he doubted that a modest tax cut would change consumers' spending habits.

"In tough times people don't respond all that well to marginal changes, such as a small amount of money added per paycheck," Wyden said.

Democratic Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chairman of the Finance Committee, said he hopes to schedule a committee vote on the stimulus package in about two weeks, which would coincide with the week of Obama's inauguration. Many senators still hope to approve a package by mid-February.

There is "general agreement that because of the recession we've got to move, we've got to move quickly, very quickly," Baucus said.

He added that it is too early to pass judgment on any aspect of Obama's plan.

"This is an early part of this whole process. A lot of preliminary questions are going to be asked," Baucus said.

[treknutz]

Whatever is said here, at least Obama did have the balls to go to the bunch of them and essentially tell them to put up ideas or shut up!

This guy has what it takes to break the bonds of partisanship. Finally, someone who gets it!

[nikosk11]

At least, Dems have the guts to oppose the boss. I want to see that happening by Republiscums. They''ll have godfather D*i*ck running on the Capitol Hill with a baseball bat.

[bobnjersey]

[Everybody that he promised something to thought it too especially the majority of white democrats. They just wanted control and they used the love struck media, his popularity and promises to ****''''s, women''''s rights groups, and blacks and other minority to get it.]
[Posted by AverJane at 10:56 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

anybody who believes what a candidate says he''s going to do in the campaign is naive.

everybody wants control ... it''s a human thing. it''s what you do with it that counts ... not that you want it ... or that you have it.

[averjane]

Wow! Even the filters this program uses will not speak out against the h*o*m*o''s. It actually did not pick up this word in my previous post where I mention how unpoplar Obama is with them right now for allowing a Christian minister to speak at his ceremony because of his views on P*r*o*p*o*s*i*t*i*o*n 8. They are really permeating every aspect of society from brainwashing the little ones (and their parents) to now making it unpoplar to speak out against them in open forums. People are so afraid of being politically incorrect it feels like we''re living under a mindset similar to Nazi Germany under Hilter.

[bobnjersey]

[Anybody with a brain withholds this kind of sweeping assessment until the man has actually been in office at least a year...good grief.]
[Posted by likeitis5050 at 10:09 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

you can wait.

if he was one to do what others wanted he never would have entered the dem primary ... hilary was the presumtive nominee. party leaders don''t want uncertainty ... and his entry into the race contributed that for the dems.

if you don''t see his independence in thought ... that''s your problem.

[bobnjersey]

[Where do you read he is being flexible?
Where do you read he is adapting non tradional policies?"]
[Posted by peace4321 at 10:11 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

you wouldn''t be able to see if it smacked you in the face ... since you''re blinded by your ideology.

[bobnjersey]

[The fact that the democrats are starting to rear their ugly heads against him only goes to prove what many of us thought anyway, that they only supported him to get control so now they will begin to bend him to their will. ]
[Posted by AverJane at 11:07 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

disagreement is now considered ''rearing their ugly heads''?

is this because you expect the republican mode of operation ... marching in lock step w/ what the president wants to do? all bowing to the ideological gods of the party?

what you all thought was that he was a flaming liberal that would destroy the country by lining up with everything a democratic congress wanted to do.

so much for what you all thought.

[averjane]

Mcliar

Your little name you use in your posts speaks for itself in describing what you think of yourself; but anyway, we''ll see won''t we? A person doesn''t have to pressume to know everything to make the comments I do. Common sense is all that''s needed to see what''s going on here.

[averjane]

The fact that the democrats are starting to rear their ugly heads against him only goes to prove what many of us thought anyway, that they only supported him to get control so now they will begin to bend him to their will. It''s what they get but it''s also what the rest of us who didn''t vote for him is going to get too. Your bad choices will affect all of us. The *** aren''t very happy with him right now either, having a Christian minister speak at his ceremony. All their out crys bring a picture to mind of someone holding a cross to a vampire and watching them recoil with hisses and curses at the sight of it like it''s actually causing pain and hurts.

[averjane]

bobnjersey

it''''s more likely that this is what ''''you'''' thought ... and not those in the democratic party.

Everybody that he promised something to thought it too especially the majority of white democrats. They just wanted control and they used the love struck media, his popularity and promises to ****''s, women''s rights groups, and blacks and other minority to get it.

But we''ll see won''t we?

[likeitis5050]

anybody w/ a brain and can think for themselves should be able to tell clearly that this guy isn''''t going to do what someone else wants him to do ... but what he believes is the best thing to do.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by bobnjersey


Anybody with a brain withholds this kind of sweeping assessment until the man has actually been in office at least a year...good grief.

[likeitis5050]

Until Congress...backed by Obama...reject their $4000 raises (and taking a pay cut would go along way in recovering confindence from taxpayers) they are all nothing but leeches as far as I''m concerned. Obama could have come out against the pay raises and that would have been the end of it. Why do they get to see increases in their own salaries while they bicker about how much is enough to charge to tax payers. They are sickening.

[bobnjersey]

[I have already started laughing hysterically at the pettiness of the DemocRats, as they turn on each other like filthy hyenas. The next four years will be hilarious! The white Rats "installed" Obama as president because they thought he would be an obedient little well-spoken negro boy - BUT WAIT! Obama has his own agenda!]
[Posted by libsnemesis at 01:22 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

it''s more likely that this is what ''you'' thought ... and not those in the democratic party.

anybody w/ a brain and can think for themselves should be able to tell clearly that this guy isn''t going to do what someone else wants him to do ... but what he believes is the best thing to do.

[bobnjersey]

[Even Democrtats criticize Obama''''s plan. That says something very, very clear. His Audacity is stammering.]
[Posted by peace4321 at 09:10 AM : Jan 09, 2009]

it says that the democrats are not marching in ideological lock step w/ obama ... and it says he''s willing to be flexible ... adopting non-traditional democratic economic policies to address the issue at hand.

it says absolutely nothing at all about audacity.

[misha128-2009]

that will require God knows what from the employer...

Posted by TexHillGirl at 10:25 PM : Jan 08, 2009

Did you hear Obama tell McCain what the fine was for small businesses ZERO. ZERO? Yes, ZERO.

[hk4u2]

DEMOCRATS UPSET THEY CANNOT RAID THE GRAVY TRAIN

It is no surprise that Democratic Senator John Kerry is leading the charge against the Obama-Biden economic stimulus package.

REASON #1 - Economic stimulus package is strictly for the purpose of rejuvenating the nation''''s economy and not a gravy train for state representatives to raid like a pork-laden convoy. Kerry is upset he does not get "taxpayer venison" to bring back to Massachusetts like a trophy.

REASON #2 - I would not be surprised if Democratic Senator John Kerry is upset about PE-Obama not picking him for Vice President (that went to Joe Biden), or for Secretary of State (Hillary Clinton), or for Secretary of Defense (Republican Robert Gates). After all, it was Kerry that played a role in giving Obama his first big break on the national stage in 2004 at the Democratic National Convention. And now Kerry may be upset that Obama has not returned the favor and provided him a high profile cabinet post. But Kerry may be returning the favor by playing hardball with Obama''''s economic stimulus package.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by WeCanDoThis2


REASON # 3

They finally realize that the Great Ohbeemie has absolutely no clue as to what to do and is only going to hurt this country more than it already is. Reality is that his 10 point plan reduced to no plan at all !!!!

[wecandothis2]

DEMOCRATS UPSET THEY CANNOT RAID THE GRAVY TRAIN

It is no surprise that Democratic Senator John Kerry is leading the charge against the Obama-Biden economic stimulus package.

REASON #1 - Economic stimulus package is strictly for the purpose of rejuvenating the nation''s economy and not a gravy train for state representatives to raid like a pork-laden convoy. Kerry is upset he does not get "taxpayer venison" to bring back to Massachusetts like a trophy.

REASON #2 - I would not be surprised if Democratic Senator John Kerry is upset about PE-Obama not picking him for Vice President (that went to Joe Biden), or for Secretary of State (Hillary Clinton), or for Secretary of Defense (Republican Robert Gates). After all, it was Kerry that played a role in giving Obama his first big break on the national stage in 2004 at the Democratic National Convention. And now Kerry may be upset that Obama has not returned the favor and provided him a high profile cabinet post. But Kerry may be returning the favor by playing hardball with Obama''s economic stimulus package.

[wecandothis2]

YOU PEOPLE ARE MISSING THE MAIN REASON WHY SOME DEMOCRATS ARE COMPLAINING . . .

People like Senators John Kerry, Tom Harkin, and Kent Conrad who are complaining about the $3,000 tax credit for businesses are really not that oppose to it. The tax credit is designed to be an incentive for businesses NOT to ship American jobs to overseas slave markets. For every job NOT shipped overseas, the employer gets $3,000. Obama & Biden promised this pledge on a daily basis when they were campaigning and NOT ONE DEMOCRAT OBJECTED AT THAT TIME. What the Democrats "really oppose" is Obama & Biden''s strict adherence to NO EARMARKS in the stimulus package. The Democrats are furious about this NO EARMARK package.

Both the Left and Right (especially the Democrats) were looking for a gravy train loaded with pork but are shock that Obama & Biden are sticking to a NO PORK stimulus package. So the Democrats are using the tax credit (something the Republicans like) as an excuse to lampoon the Obama-Biden economic stimulus package.

PEOPLE, PAY ATTENTION!!! FOLLOW THE MISSING EARMARK (PORK)! THAT IS WHY THE DEMOCRATS ARE WHINING AND THE REPUBLICANS ARE HUSH-HUSH!!!

[samthetvcat]

pt 1

---"Sen John Kerry, D-Mass., said, "I''d rather spend the money on the infrastructure, on direct investment, on energy conversion, on other kinds of things that much more directly, much more rapidly and much more certainly create a real job."---

My initial reaction was like yikes, no more tax cuts. And then I heard what everybody was saying about like yeah what about the last tax rebate not working and what about the multiplier effect.

But after thinking about it, I''m not so sure after all that it''s as important a choice as like some of the other tools the Senate has at their disposal.

Because if the problem is that people aren''t going to spend the money because confidence is down, then the opposite isn''t necessarily true that if the money''s instead invested in infrastructure the recipients will spend it because confidence is up, right?

[samthetvcat]

pt 2

Like is ''stimulus'' plan maybe a misnomer in the sense that it''s really more of a stop-gap to minimize the downward spiral and alleviate suffering until the housing market bottoms out, credit thaws, etc?

In which case, a tax cut isn''t going to help increase GDP but it MIGHT help the other goal of alleviating hardship - people are scoffing at $500 not being a lot, but it''s more evenly distributed to a greater number of people and if inflation starts to take root or if gas starts going and people haven''t gotten any share of the stimulus, then there might be a tendency to sort of focus on the waste that''s bound to come up - the multi-million dollar bridges to nowhere, the politicians who used the money to get massages or whatnot.

Also if the economy starts to show signs of improving and people have used the money to pay off debts or have banked it, they''re all that much better positioned to start spending again once they feel more confident.

Like maybe it''s more an issue of intent?

Has Congress focused at all on stuff like renewing that textile quota that''s about to lapse? Is there something that prevents them from reviewing that sort of stuff? I wonder if maybe acts like that might be a better way to create jobs (?)